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Thursday, 4 May 2017

IBI Webinar - Biochar building materials & composites

International Biochar Initiative - Educational Webinar Series

Biochar Building Materials & Composites

May 23, 2017 • 5:00 - 6:30 pm EDT

While
the use of biochar as a soil amendment has been researched for more
than a decade, the use of carbonized biomass in building materials and
other composites is just beginning to flourish. Not only can carbon be
sequestered in building materials, but using biochar can lower the
embodied energy of such materials. Importantly various properties of
the building materials and composites can be enhanced when biochar is
added to cement and other materials. This Webinar brings together three
of the leaders in the field of biochar use in building materials and
composites to provide a glimpse into the latest research on this topic.Hans-Peter
Schmidt, head of the Ithaka Institute for Carbon Strategies, was an
early pioneer in using biochar in plasters and concrete. He applied his
biochar enhanced plaster to his wine cellar as well as to the
headquarters of the Ithaka Institute and has made a variety of different
building materials. Hans-Peter will provide an update on how his early
biochar based materials have fared as well as an update on other more
recent research collaborations on the use of biochar based materials in
tunnels.Harn
Wei Kua, an Associate Professor at the National University of Singapore,
has worked on sustainable building materials and methods for many
years. He has recently published a paper on the benefits of using
biochar made from food waste and saw dust in cementitious mortar which
will be described in this webinar. He will also speak about the various
concrete properties that biochar can improve.John
McDonald-Wharry is a researcher based in New Zealand that has been
studying the use of biochar in various construction and composite
materials. He will provide an overview of how material properties
typically change with increasing degree of carbonization (or charring
intensity), and discuss different approaches to creating composite
materials from chars and carbonized biomass. John will also address
various claimed functionality of char-containing composites and what
evidence is currently available as well as some potential issues and
challenges with biochar-containing composites and their research,
development and implementation.This
webinar will be of interest to architects, urban planners, the
construction industry, as well biochar producers, researchers, climate
researchers and more. An interactive Q&A period will follow at the
end of the Webinar.

Cost?

Free to IBI Members or $40 for non-members

To Register

Registration includes access to the slides and a recording of the webinar.IBI Members register here (go to the upcoming webinars section).Your event link will be emailed to you after successful confirmation about your membership status.
Non-IBI members register here.

Presenters

Hans-Peter SchmidtHans-Peter
Schmidt has been a pioneer in the field of biochar since 2008. He has
worked on all aspects of biochar including the creation of a wide
variety of biochar production equipment, biochar production in high and
low technology scenarios, application techniques, field trial design,
biochar characterization, and biochar education (creator of the Ithaka
Journal). In addition, Hans-Peter has designed and used biochar plaster
as a building material and is working with researchers on its use in 3D
printing. He has extensive experience working across Europe and has
worked on developing world projects as well including Nepal, Bangladesh
and Ghana.Harn Wai KuaAssociate
Professor Kua is the current Assistant Dean (Academic) of the School of
Design and Environment, and the co-leader of the Smart Materials
Laboratory in the Department of Building of the National University of
Singapore. He graduated from the Building Technology Program of MIT and
his current research interest is in the areas of life cycle
sustainability assessment of building materials and bio-based building
materials that promote life cycle sustainability.

John McDonald-WharryJohn
McDonald-Wharry completed a doctoral research project in chemistry and
engineering at the University of Waikato which was started in 2010. This
project involved developing structural models for char chemistry,
researching techniques for the characterization of biomass chars, and
the creation of composite materials from carbonized herbaceous leaf
fibers. This research also involved chemical analysis of other
carbonaceous materials such as activated carbons, carbon nanotubes,
fullerenes, carbon fibers and graphites. In 2014, John was able to apply
biochar screening and composite formulation know-how from PhD work to
create a range of char-based composites from pine biochars produced by
Massey University's New Zealand Biochar Research Centre. John is
currently employed on an "Additive manufacturing and 3D and/or 4D printing of bio-composites" project involving composite formulation design and material science research.Moderator: Kathleen DraperKathleen is a member of the IBI Board and Chair of IBI's Information Hub. She is also the US Director of the Ithaka Institute for Carbon Intelligence.
The Institute is an open source net work focusing on beneficial carbon
sequestration strategies which simultaneously provide economic
development opportunities both in the developed and developing world.
She is an editor and writer for The Biochar Journal,
sponsored by the Ithaka Institute. Kathleen also works with various
different universities and individuals on projects that are
investigating the use of biochar in cement and other building and
packaging products to develop products with lower embodied carbon which
can be made from locally available organic waste. She has written
extensively about various topics related to biochar and is a co-author
of the book "Terra Preta: How the World's Most Fertile Soil Can Help
Reverse Climate Change and Reduce World Hunger".For more information:For more information or if you have any questions about registration please email Vera Medici at vmedici@ttcorp.com. If you have suggestions for future webinars, please send them to: webinars@biochar-international.org.If you are interested in learning more about the topic of biochar building material, consider attending the upcoming workshop Biochar From the Ground Up, June 12 - 16 in Summertown, Tennessee.Want to become an IBI member? Visit our membership page to help support IBI